Peppercomm Blogs

You Used to Show Up on My Memes Screen

The presidential election of 2016 will certainly be remembered as truly unique to any of its predecessors. Differing from previous years, social media is being seen as a key medium in measuring support and wooing potential voters unsure of which candidate to vote for. In order to stand out in a time when you can tweet and delete, social media and publications alike have contributed to the rise of the meme, the one common ground connecting an increasingly polarized population.

The political memes of 2016 have helped to tackle the frustration of the current elections with a humorous twist. Pop icons such as Drake and Kermit the Frog have been used as a way of expressing frustration, excitement and all the range of emotions that the current political contests have brought out.

Memes are being seen as a source of comic relief during a truly bizarre election. The unique way the public is addressing certain candidates on subjects from their age, viewpoints and appearance gives a fascinating character study on how well candidates are received. Additionally, they help measure public perception of how much the candidates engage with the public and how well their message is reaching potential voters. With candidates being portrayed in both positive and negative lights, all bets are off on the context. Even Sesame Street is getting in on the action.

Unfortunately, memes are not safe from being used for entirely unfunny reasons. Recently, the popular “Pepe the Frog” meme went from being a way to express common frustrations known as “first-world problems,” to being declared a symbol of hate by the anti-defamation league. Is nothing sacred anymore?

The fact that a made-up drawing of a sad frog has so much political pull shows how much of a reach these images have, and that memes aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. Thankfully, with five weeks left until Election Day, there will be plenty of time to get a few more laughs in.